Car carrier giant to cut fleet size

Written by Nick Blenkey
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Oslo, Norway, headquartered RO/RO specialist Wallenius Wilhelmsen says that, with the coronavirus situation evolving rapidly across the globe, it is taking precautionary steps to adjust its operations and safeguard its liquidity going forward.

“In the coming months, service demand is unlikely to follow normal patterns and we will adjust schedules and capacity accordingly,” says the company. “We see that both frequency and lead-time will be impacted, but together with customers we will work hard to keep operations going the best way possible. In these uncertain times, trust and transparency will be crucial to minimizing disruptions.”

Wallenius Wilhelmsen says that the current situation indicates an overcapacity of 10-15 vessels in its fleet of more than 50 vessels. This, it says, will be solved through a combination of redelivery of chartered vessels to tonnage providers, early recycling and cold-lay-ups.

“For crew on our vessels we have put in place rigorous biosecurity processes and minimize contact with persons from affected countries,” says the company. “Travel restrictions have also made it necessary to stop crew changes and shore leave. This puts both crew on board and on shore in a difficult position, and we highly appreciate their great work in this trying time.”

The company says that its terminals have strict access and health controls in place and are currently all in operation, but that it sees disturbances and congestions at some ports it calls, adding that “as the COVID-19 situation develops and border restrictions take their toll we expect disruptions to increase.”

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